The General Election Manifesto
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About the Greens
The Greens are a political party guided by four key principles; ecological sustainability, grassroots democracy, social justice, and peace & nonviolence.
We have the courage to put people and our future first. This means enacting smart, meaningful solutions to ensure the clean air, water and soil we need for human life; it also means enacting policy to promote a fair, equal and egalitarian Australian society.
Furthermore, we stand in the model Parliament to give a voice to those who have little or none in our democracy: children, refugees, students, individuals, families living in poverty, and our natural environment.
Our policy priorities, at a glance
The Greens will focus on the following areas first:
The Economy and Government Financial Policy
The Australian Greens, believing in an Australia that both is economically sound and acts in the best interest of the worker, intend to combat the rising inequalities in our current tax system by reducing income tax rates for low income workers while raising such for high income workers.
Subsidies for the extraction and consumption of fossil fuels will be done away with so that Australia is given the opportunity to transfer our economy to one that acts in the best interest of our beautiful environment. Similarly, government assistance to industry will be subject to regular, thorough review of the impacts of said industry on the environment, our society, and our economy as a whole.
The Australian Greens will investigate the possibility of placing caps (or other restrictions) on excessive salaries for business executives. The Australian Greens will grant regulators greater powers to prevent anti-competitive behaviour. The Australian Greens will work to simplify the current state of our tax system so that the burden may be shifted away from those on low incomes.
To these ends, we will introduce legislation to raise the tax-free threshold to the level of the minimum full-time wage, and remove the reduced tax bracket introduced by the last Howard Government to match the highest income tax bracket.
The exploration tax credits and fuel excise exemptions which subsidise fossil fuel extraction and use will be ended for corporations; only farmers will be able to access the fuel excise exemption for off-road use. A carbon emissions trading scheme will also be introduced to put a price on fossil fuel’s impact on accelerating dangerous climate change. This will improve our economy by insulating it against the high costs of inaction on the issue of manmade climate change, and transforming the economy to one prepared to service the country and the world, into the distant future.
The Treasury will explore creating a corporate entity that finances co-operative projects and high-technology startups, providing more capital for those in need, and promoting creativity and innovation.
A Greens Government would not obsess over “balancing the budget”; we will address the structural deficit by reforming the tax system, increasing revenue and spending, while redirecting more government spending from rent-seeking and wealth transfer projects to areas that benefit the nation socially. In the medium and long term, this would boost and strengthen GDP growth, while aiding in paving the way to a post-scarcity economy.
Environment, Climate Change and Science
The Australian Greens are the strongest advocates for protecting the world’s ecosystem and atmosphere from the ravages of human industry; we are the only party proposing a zero carbon economy by 2040.
As mentioned in the previous section, we want to see the removal of fossil fuel subsidies and tax breaks. Alongside this, we would like to introduce provisions of the criminalisation of Ecocide, as recently done in the United Kingdom, with extra precautions put in place for the protection of national parks on Australian land. CSG extraction and the potential dangers of fracking will also come to the forefront of our environmental conversation.
We feel that we need to oppose the introduction of nuclear energy and continue to push the strong and powerful agenda of that the future is renewable, not radioactive. The Clean Energy Finance Corporation and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency will be further empowered to invest in solar, wind, tidal and geothermal energy generation to replace the dirty, dangerous coal and gas power plants around the nation.
Bans on the Live Exports trades should be negotiated with other parties, especially the potential government or opposition after the election, in the coming months.
As for the topic of science, we would continue to push progressive policies and legislation forward. Specifically, we would like to begin offering more research grants to offer economic incentives for more research, particularly in medical science.
We should continue to invest in methods that innovate and sustain important manufacturing, processing, and production sectors, especially focusing on allowing them to remain energy efficient. This helps both their bank accounts and the environment, but most importantly, investing in the scientific capacity of universities and new technologies is a top priority that we should continue to push forward with.
Intellectual Property, International Law and National Security
The Australian Greens believe in giving people more personal freedom, and allowing us all to unleash our creativity and innovative ideas.
At the forefront of our policy, is our plan to reform intellectual property to make sense in the modern age, by clarifying and broadening fair-use exemptions, and tightening patent requirements and lengths. In addition, we will reduce the consequences of piracy, by setting a lower maximum sentence for infringing piracy laws, and broadening fair use law.
Our national sovereignty is important. Thus, we will carefully consider the legal portions of any current (TPP) and future trade agreements and how they interact with our legal system.
On law and order, the Greens shall consider all current "national security" -related gag orders and similar, and where appropriate, add stricter guidelines and/or public interest exemptions. A review of our deradicalisation programs shall also be undertaken, to become more inclusive and effective.
To allow citizens and residents of this nation the right to privacy, we will step away from the morally questionable Five Eyes partnership, and allow private companies more control over the metadata they keep, with reformed data retention laws.�
Social Policy and Equality
Our party was founded on grassroots democracy, and empowered by the voices of political and social minorities who could not be heard by the major political parties. The Greens will fight to reform social policy, especially the outdated, complex and unfair welfare system, which entrenches poverty and socioeconomic disadvantage.
We will introduce a living wage for the elderly and disabled, by raising the aged pension and reforming the welfare system according the recommendations of the McClure review.
In the major cities around Australia, the Greens plan to build suburbs specifically to house people who cannot afford their own home. This will give many Australians locked out of purchasing shelter for their family, a chance to finally do so.
We would like to legislate small tax incentives for companies who have more gender diversity in their employees, especially in higher positions; the glass ceiling is meant to be smashed, and different voices are healthy in business.
The Greens feel uneasy about the discrimination against gay men when it comes to blood donation. Thus, we would explore making it illegal to reject an MSM blood donor unless there is evidence that they or someone they've had sex with do have AIDS or HIV.
Defence and International Assistance
The Australian Greens see Australia as having the potential to become the model volunteer in promoting global citizenry and lending a hand when other nations need one. Our Australian Defence Force is a great vehicle to achieve that objective, through increased investment and broadened capability.
Increasing defence spending and employing more personnel, especially in non-combat areas, will allow it to function better as a “National Service”; this will allow it to better respond to natural and artificial disasters at home and abroad.
Increasing our deployments in countries and regions where the United Nations is trying to establish peace, will help ensure the safety and protection of vulnerable people, while meeting our moral and legal obligations to the UN and our global allies.
Establishing a national defence materiel production industry would create jobs, provide income to the nation, and safeguard our industrial capability in a worst-case global scenario. This would also give us an opportunity to lead the world in producing zero-carbon emissions intensive defence vehicles and other materiel.
Building the new fleet of submarines here in Australia will retain jobs, and provide another opportunity for international export of our products, while further safeguarding our industrial capacity into the future.
The Department of Veteran’s Affairs will be reformed, to serve veterans’ needs before the government's. Many of our returned defence force members and their families despise the department for their treatment at Veteran’s Affair’s hands; this must change..
Communications and Infrastructure
Computing and communications technology has completely transformed the globe between the 20th and 21st centuries. Building the infrastructure required to support a post-scarcity, automated economy that is ever-rapidly coming requires immediate and needs-based investment, done correctly before it is critically needed.
The Australian Greens will fund the shift to providing 93% of premises with fibre to the premise through NBNco, and remove the quirk in current legislation which requires greenfield sites to install copper cables to brand new homes. In addition, we will look at how to reverse the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s decision to require NBNco to provide 121 points of interconnect (POIs) on the National Broadband Network; a decision that is pricing smaller internet service providers out of the market.
We will expand Infrastructure Australia, and turn it into a non-corporate entity that analyses the whole of country infrastructure needs. IA would then plan, design and get approval from the responsible minister to build new infrastructure and repair current assets, and recommend selling infrastructure when it is in the national interest. This is to remove the politicking and pork-barrelling that is endemic around government infrastructure investment.
Our plan for our urban areas is to begin creating green buildings, to make our cities, towns and businesses more sustainable and environmentally friendly. We will do this through legislation to require renewable energy generation capabilities, or gardens and green space on larger buildings and developments of a certain size or larger.
Health and Sport
The Australian Greens want to promote health and wellbeing throughout the entire Australian population. While disease prevention and weight loss is almost entirely dependent on what you eat, and how much you eat, sport and exercise is important in improving mental health, physical capability and creating a sense of community.
The foundation under our encouragement of a healthier lifestyle, is a strong, broadened Medicare. Despite attacks on its funding over the last few years, Medicare remains one of the best socialised healthcare systems in the world; from July 1st, this will be further improved with the addition of the Australian Progressives’ Denticare; a socialised public dental system that covers all Australians and working residents. We will commit to further broadening of Medicare services, by adding mental health services to the Medicare Benefits Schedule. This will end the hodgepodge of election commitments and benevolent funds that have sustained mental healthcare for the most vulnerable Australians, providing a whole-of-body coverage for all who need to access it.
More funding will be put into Allied Health services, and regional & remote areas; the hospital funding model for states will be reformed as well.
A national program offering free cooking classes focusing on fresh, healthy and quick meals for families and singles will be rolled out, targeting areas of the country with poorer health outcomes.
The Australian Institute of Sport will have its remit widened, to perform more research in health sciences. A national insurance scheme for amateur sporting bodies will be introduced, to bring down the price of sports participation.
Asylum Seekers and Immigration
Under the UN Refugee Convention, a person has a right to seek asylum in a signatory country; they are allowed to enter unlawfully to do so.
The Australian Greens will end the barbaric practice of indefinite detention of asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru. In its place, we shall bring all asylum seekers in these camps to Australia, and place them in community detention, while swiftly processing their claims in under 90 days.
We will engage with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and provide funding to the South East Asia branch for expanding their presence in transit countries for asylum seekers travelling to Australia; we will also attempt to enter into partnerships with Indonesia and Malaysia to process asylum seeker claims in their countries.
We will detach asylum seeker numbers from the overall refugee intake to remove the perception of ‘queue-jumpers’ taking the spots of refugees in other countries.
The Greens will reduce the immigration intake overall, by drastically tightening 457 visa laws and reducing the amount of visas issued. An easier pathway to citizenship for New Zealand citizens who grew up in Australia will also be looked at, to give them an equal opportunity in life to their Australian peers.
Education
No party rests its credentials on educational policy like the Australian Greens. We support government-run, secular education implemented with the best 21st century practices, with funding being directed where it is most needed, to provide equal opportunity for every child in the nation.
We will support the continuing commitment to provide the Gonski school funding model to the schools that need it. We will direct more private and independent school funding to public schools, recognising the private school sector’s ability to raise their own funds and their predilection to building unnecessary facilities with public funds.
We will review the curriculum, and use international best practices in educating children in kindergarten to high school. The Greens envisage that this will see more play-based and hands-on learning making its way into the National Curriculum, and a move away from rote learning and an exams-based testing model. The MySchool website will be reformed, to reflect that NAPLAN testing is not the be-all and end-all of a school’s quality.
The Greens will restore higher education funding to the university sector, with higher Commonwealth per student funding to bring the after-study debt of graduates down. We will also raise the allowances paid to students, aiding them in meeting the cost of living, and restoring the work/study/life balance.
Employment and Industrial Relations
The Australian Greens, believing in an Australia where toiling with heart and hand is rewarded and rewarded well, will enhance the rights of workers by gradually working towards a higher minimum wage of $30/hour, more annual leave (5 weeks), and lower hours of work.
In addition, Australia will enter into compliance with international law regarding the right to organise, freedom of association, and collective bargaining. This will be accomplished through the legal strengthening of unions, as well as the full protection of the rights of workers to join one. Australian workers will have their right to strike protected and strengthened further.
The Australian Greens will repeal any and all independent contractors legislation that strips employment rights from individuals, and will launch investigation for that purpose.
The Australian Greens will ensure that training and skills development opportunities are made available to all workers without any loss of pay.
The Australian Greens will reinstitute a publicly owned employment service, removing the shoddy private job service agencies, and investigate other ways that the government could directly impact unemployment, including ending Work for the Dole and reintroducing the Commonwealth Development Employment Program in remote Australia.
First Australians
The Australian Greens acknowledge that the British Empire invaded the lands of the First Australians and dispossessed them of those lands without compensation.
Furthermore, the ongoing Northern Territory intervention contravenes the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and the centralised nature of such federal and state government programs to improve social outcomes in indigenous communities lead to confused, ineffective implementations.
We will push for a treaty between the Commonwealth of Australia and the nations of the First Australians, which would codify a mutual agreement on sovereignty and self-determination between all.
We will repeal the Stronger Futures in the Northern Territory Act, and give basic rights back to the people who live in the communities affected by the Act
Native title laws need to be reformed, so as to give First Australian title holders the opportunity to exploit their land for economic purposes.
We will explore the possibility of setting up traditional councils to run indigenous communities, and better engage with communities to provide the right support they need to close the gap in health and social outcomes.
Agriculture, Regional and Rural Australia
Regional Australia has been marginalised for a long time. The Greens are committed to helping regional and rural areas reconnect to the rest of Australia, by providing the infrastructure, services and government assistance required to unlock the economic and social potential outside our major cities.
The Concessional Loans scheme shall be changed into a farming payment scheme, freeing farmers from owing the government money in bad times. This shall tie in with an agricultural transformation fund, which encourages livestock and fibre farmers to switch to more sustainable, climate-friendly and diverse cropping mixtures depending on their region.
An Australian Reefs protection fund will aid farmers and regional industry in eliminating sediment and toxic run-off into waterways, aiding in preserving natural wonders like the Great Barrier Reef.
We want to change access laws for mining companies coming on to private property without consent from landowners; giving the power back to those working the land.
Authorised and compiled by /u/phyllicanderer, The Model Greens
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